


Collide

by bruhman745



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dream Team SMP Setting (Video Blogging RPF), Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Basically Dream dreams the SMP as it's happening, Blood and Gore, Character Death In Dream, Dream Smp, Dream Team SMP Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Dream Team SMP Spoilers, Dream World, Dreams and Nightmares, Fantasy, M/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Manberg-Pogtopia War on Dream Team SMP (Video Blogging RPF), Slow Burn, The characters in the dreams don't know they're roleplay characters, dreamnotfound
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:53:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29042679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bruhman745/pseuds/bruhman745
Summary: A head turn to the right revealed a large glass and stone structure, a shorter watchtower, and a house that sat in the middle of the lake. A head turn to the left showed the beginnings of a large castle-like structure and a dark staircase that led to something glowing purple, even in midday. He spun around to look up at the house looming behind him, realization finally setting in. The sturdy foundation, horrendously familiar bricks, and shiny glass aquarium sent an electric shock through Dream.The community house?-------------------------------**All characters in this story are based on content creators, any and all ships are shipping the characters, not the actual creators, and I will take this story down if asked to by anyone featured in it.**I TRY TO BE AS ACCURATE ON SMP EVENTS AS I CAN!
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity/Karl Jacobs/Sapnap, Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 45





	1. Unknown Magic

**Author's Note:**

> **All characters in this story are based on content creators, any and all ships are shipping the characters, not the actual creators, and I will take this story down if asked to by anyone featured in it.**

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first night.

Dream leaned back in his chair, ears buzzing with adrenaline. He had just finished laying down the terms for Tommy’s exile and logged off of the Dream SMP server. He could already see his Twitter timeline blowing up with clips from today. The speech he’d given about spirit was his best work so far, and everyone was applauding him. He opened Twitter and slid his headset down to his neck, grinning. His eyes scanned the timeline for a moment before he went to type up a Tweet. 

After he hit post, Dream stood and put his headphones in their place. He pushed in his chair and stretched before heading out of his room and into the kitchen. He opened up a cabinet, a smile on his face as he watched Patches jump up on the counter in front of him. She purred and chirped as he poured out her food, setting the bowl down in front of her. He watched her eat for a moment, running a gentle hand over her back. A moment later, he headed to the front door. He double-checked the lock before hitting the lightswitch, turning off the kitchen light. 

Dream flopped down onto his couch, grabbing the remote to turn on the TV. He surfed Netflix for a while, avoiding the news as usual, before he just gave in and scrolled through his Twitter. He interacted with fans, commenting and liking their posts, for a while. He found himself drifting off, struggling to keep his heavy eyes open before they shut tight. 

When he opened them again, Dream found himself in broad daylight. 

A bright blue sky stretched above him, the fresh smell of spring flooding his nose. He sat up slowly, blinking as he took in his surroundings. He was sitting in the middle of a wooden path that stretched for miles in front of him. Bamboo sprung up outside of fences bordering the colorful lake that sat peacefully beneath him. 

A head turn to the right revealed a large glass and stone structure, a shorter watchtower, and a house that sat in the middle of the lake. A head turn to the left showed the beginnings of a large castle-like structure and a dark staircase that led to something glowing purple, even in midday. He spun around to look up at the house looming behind him, realization finally setting in. The sturdy foundation, horrendously familiar bricks, and shiny glass aquarium sent an electric shock through Dream. 

The community house?

He stood slowly, his limbs heavy. He held out his arms and almost gasped saw glistening purple armor decorating his arms, obscuring the lime green hoodie underneath. It clunked as he moved his feet, shining under the bright sun. Dream put a hand on his head, feeling the rounded helmet on top. He slid his fingers down the side of it, bringing them to his face. He expected to feel his skin, but instead, his touch was met with cold porcelain and his heart dropped. 

It was blatantly obvious where he was. Who he was. 

He opened his inventory, looking at the items neatly boxed away. It was almost disorienting, his head starting to sway the longer he looked at it. He held his axe, closing the gray hologram with a swipe of his hand. He figured out how to switch to different items in his hotbar after a moment and switched to an empty hand. The armor covering his body started to feel lighter the longer he stood in front of the community house. It hummed with unknown magic, the power warming him seemingly from within. 

Despite the mask that obscured his entire face, Dream could see just fine. He looked over the edge of the path, catching a haunting glimpse of his appearance in the water. The smile was ominous, yet something kept him from taking the unsettling item off. 

After another moment of blank staring, as if he expected something to change, Dream looked down the prime path. Buildings lined it just as they did in the SMP. From Purpled’s UFO to the ruins of Tubbo’s house, it was all there. He began to walk the path, his boots landing on the sturdy wood noisily. His eyes followed the path to where it branched off into the Holy Land. The Church of Prime glimmered in the sunlight, the bright quartz contrasting brilliantly against the green landscape. Everything looked so real. The land was smooth and the towers were round, contradicting everything that Dream knew of this land beforehand. 

He strayed from the path, walking down the slope and into the Holy Land. He crossed the threshold of the church, admiring the way the purple glass reflected color across the glistening walls. The water flowed from the ceiling, almost perfectly clear. Dream stepped closer to it, putting a hand under the stream. It was cool and clean, almost refreshing to the touch. His eyes wandered over the pews, which looked much more like actual seats rather than just stairs. He wandered to the front, running his dry hand over the wood. The lectern at the front resembled a podium now, taller than the surrouding desks. The golden bell stood, slightly rusting, in its usual place. Dream gave it a gentle push as he walked past and it rang loud and clear, bringing a small smile to his face. The podium held a small book on it, one with a deep purple cover and gilded pages. Upon closer inspection, it held the Twitch TOS. He chuckled and ran his thumb along the pages, leaning against the desk. 

He really had to be dreaming at this point. The magic armor on his body, the literal hologram that came from no where when he opened his inventory, none of it would ever happen in real life. Besides, he was literally standing in a building that was built on his own Minecraft server! Still, it all felt so real. The fresh springtime air, the cool breeze that drifted in and somehow cut through his armor, and not to mention the sights. Everything was full of life, glittering and vibrant. The fish underneath the community house swam happily and the world seemed to inhale and exhale as the day progressed, its ecosystem working beautifully. His mind must be really creative to make all of this happen. Too bad he wouldn’t remember it in the morning. 

“Dream? Why are you in here?” 

Dream was thrown from his thoughts as someone spoe. He quickly looked up, setting down the book back on the podium. Through the water, he could see a bright purple sweatshirt, topped off with a fluffy head of brown hair.   
“Karl! I’m just uhm, praying?” He laughed, heading around the front and into the pews. Karl stepped out from behind the waterfall, smiling. He wore a mostly purple sweatshirt, the hood pink and sleeves multicolored. An emerald green spiral was slapped in the middle, bringing it all together. He looked almost normal aside from the shiny iron boots that protected his feet. They reflected the purple sunbeams, creating a pattern on the dark floor. 

“Never off the grind! Gotta get those primes, huh?” Karl leaned on a pew, tilting his head slightly to look at Dream. 

“Heh, yeah. So.. Where is everyone else?”  
Dream really hadn’t thought about running into others. He had been so focused on figuring out the world around him that it hadn’t even occurred to him that his friends could exist here. 

“Mostly in L’Manberg. I mean, they can’t really leave with your guards there, or the walls!” Karl shrugged, pointing out the window towards a giant tower that Dream recognized as Eret’s. 

“Ah, I mean, yeah. That’d be pretty hard.” Dream looked down, rubbing the back of his neck. “They could leave if they want, none of us are live right now.” 

“Live?” Karl asked simply.

Dream rose an eyebrow, a sinking feeling settling in. It chilled him a bit despite his layers of clothing and armor.

“Yeah, you know.. On Twitch? Well for Techno it’s YouTube, but you know,” he laughed it off, the words hanging thick in the air. Karl stared at him for an agonizingly long moment, then shrugged and laughed with him. 

“You sure have some screws loose today. Well, I was gonna go hang out with Big Q, so I’ll see you later?” Karl turned back around, waving.

“Er.. Yeah. See you.” Dream waved his hand hesitantly, watching Karl skip out and down towards the community house. 

What? 

That was definitely weird, but it also fed into Dream’s theory. There’s no way this was real. He was obviously having some weird fever dream. Karl just happened to show up in it. Maybe he should make his way towards L’Manberg. He might just run into somebody else. 

Dream headed out of the Holy Land, the sun low in the sky. It shot golden rays across the grass, giving the church a beautiful honey glow. The sky began to fade into Twitch prime purples as he passed Punz’s house. It had just been midday. Was the time just like a Minecraft day? It would only make sense. 

Dream made it up the stairs to Tommy’s home, feeling much more tired that he had expected. The climb didn’t seem so bad when he was sitting at his keyboard… 

At the top of the hill, voices drifted over to him. He recognized them almost immediately and his face lit up. George and Sapnap! He headed over, the only light from a streetlamp and scattered torches. He paused a moment before heading into view. If they were anything like Karl, they would probably be a bit weird. He wondered what his dream friends would be like..

As Dream stepped under the glowstone lamp, Sapnap rose his voice. 

“What do you think  _ you’re  _ doing here?!” he spat, his tone sharp. 

He stood in glowing netherite, a bandana wrapped around his forehead. His hair was black and hung in his eyes, sticking out beneath his helmet. 

“What? Sapnap-” 

“Please, Dream. We know what you said! Don’t play dumb!” His friend continued to shout. George was settled next to him, sitting on a mound of dirt. He wore an almost full armor set, the only missing piece being his helmet. A golden crown sat in its place, reflecting honey-colored torch light in the night. His clout goggles were sat in his lap, his eyes on Dream. His face was serious, a bit of concern etched into his expression. 

“Look, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but whatever it is I didn’t mean it like that,” Dream started, but was cut off yet again. 

“You don’t know?!” Sapnap’s voice cracked slightly. “That’s bullshit! You said you don’t care about us. We’ve been here since before those stupid discs, you’re just being a dick!” 

Dream frowned and shook his head, putting out his arms as if that would prove his innocence. Sapnap was pissed about the discs? He didn’t actually care about those stupid things! 

“That’s all roleplay, of course I care about you guys! What the hell are you so messed up over?” he responded, his tone itching with irritation. He looked around more, noticing that Punz, Bad, and Eret were all standing around and watching. 

“You fucking-” Sapnap started, but Bad cut him off. 

“Language! Look, this isn’t why we’re here! Dream, you know what this meeting is for. Why don’t we just get into it?” Bad started, trying to ease the tension. 

Dream stared at him for a moment before words just started pouring out of his mouth, seemingly on their own. Despite not even knowing where he was earlier, Dream knew exactly what to say here. He rose his voice, telling George that he couldn’t be king if he wasn’t neutral. He rambled and talked, the words coming from an unknown place inside of Dream. He stepped forward as he spoke, taking the crown from his head and throwing it to the ground. 

“You can’t be the king if you start wars!” He shouted.

“You wouldn’t be doing this if you actually cared about me, Dream!” George stood, shouting back at Dream. Punz raised his weapon towards the conflict, ready to defend George as his knight.

“I’m doing this because I care about you, George!” Dream roared, his chest heaving from the adrenaline. 

The midnight air hung thick and humid, the moonlight shining over them. The crackle of the torches hummed in the background accompanied by distant mob sounds. 

A torch popped and cracked just as George started to walk away. He broke into a sprint down the path, not saying a word. 

"George!" Dream called after him, shaking off the red-hot fury that had just possessed him. He was left empty and cold, fighting to run after his friend. Bad and the rest followed, Sapnap shouting at Dream as they ran. 

"This is all your fault! You're selfish!" He screamed, his voice laced with sharp metal. Dream ignored him, deciding to deal with that later. He was more focused on not wanting an upset George, and what the hell just possessed him. 

It was like his acting from earlier, coming from thin air and almost completely improvised. This all felt like what was supposed to happen in the future, after today's events.

They ran until they reached Eret's castle. Monsters lurked in the darker areas off the path, but Dream chose to ignore them. The looming towers of the entrance reached up to the stars, the walls following close behind. It was intimidating, hovering over the SMP and looking out across the community house. 

They ran inside and found George sitting upon what was once his throne, the one that belonged to Eret before him. A tear in his eye glittered in the low light, and mimicking the shine of the solid gold he sat upon. Dream felt something shift inside of him, taking in the sight of George on the throne. It really suited him..

Despite this feeling, he shouted at him to get off of it, the rage from earlier jerking his emotions towards anger once again. George screamed at him back, denying the circumstances. He wouldn't be dethroned. He wouldn't step down. 

Dream pulled out his axe, ready to attack his friend. He fought it internally, the part of him that knew this was all fake pulling him back from what he was about to do. The other half of him stepped forward and raised his weapon, ready to bring it down upon George. 

"No!" Sapnap screamed from behind and drew his own sword, charging right at Dream. He gasped and swung around to block the hit, but he wasn't fast enough.

Before the blade could collide with his neck, Dream woke up in a cold sweat. He panted heavily, sitting up abruptly. His own living room came into view again, the slight glow from the TV illuminating the room. Patches slept on his feet, but was now looking up at him. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, grabbing his phone to look at the time. 

The light from his phone was blinding, but once he turned it down he could see it was four in the morning. Great. Dream stood slowly and stretched, yawning. That dream really took a turn for the worst towards the end there, but thank god it was only a dream. He would hate to be stuck in a world like that forever! He trudged to his bedroom, turning off the lights on the way. He laid down on his bed, sinking into the warmth of his blankets and pillows. Patches jumped up a moment later, snuggling up to his side as he drifted off again. This was much more comfortable..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading this thats very poggers of you  
> just doing this for fun, should update often because I have a good plan for this story.  
> i promise that you'll get dreamnotfound content dw dw i didn't just put that in here for nothing :)


	2. Porcelain Prison

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second night proves to be a bit more gruesome than the first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AYO TRIGGER WARNING FOR GORE AND VIOLENCE AND ALSO PANIC ATTACK(?) KINDA IDK

The rest of the night went on in complete silence, allowing Dream to get some good rest. He woke up still feeling groggy, stretching as he got ready for the day. The sky was gloomy and gray, a light drizzle sprinkling his windows. If he were anywhere else, it would have turned to snow. The dreary atmosphere made him yawn, so he decided to get some coffee. 

The dream from last night buzzed in the front of his mind, replaying moments on repeat. The sights of the church, George’s face as he sat on the throne, Sapnap’s blade as it swung towards his face. It made Dream shudder. It all felt so real, only for it to be over with the morning. He sighed and grabbed a mug from the cabinet, setting it in the coffee maker. After it finished, he grabbed it and took a sip, making a face as it burned his tongue. 

Dream sat down on the couch and grabbed his phone, turning it on. 

“Shit!” he gasped, almost dropping his drink right into his lap. It was almost noon and he needed to be there for Tommy’s exile! He sprung up from the couch, hurrying to his room. Patches looked up from her place on his bed, watching him scramble to turn on his PC. 

“Goddammit, the _one_ day that I decide to sleep in,” he grumbled, huffing. He set down his mug beside his keyboard watching the screen turn on. He opened Discord, the script for today, and Minecraft. He’d rehearsed his parts the week before, so he should be good for the day. It’s not like he had much to say since it was mostly Tubbo’s lines then improv from there.

As Minecraft started up, Dream sat down and grabbed his headset, sliding it around his neck. He clicked into the Dream SMP Discord, looking through everything he’d missed. Tubbo and a few others were already in VC 1, which wasn’t looking good for him. He checked to see if Tubbo was live, watching the stream for a moment. Okay, he wasn’t late yet. He typed a quick apology in the discord and got ready to join the action. 

___________________________________________

The exile was beautiful. Everything went just as planned, one could even say it was flawless, and the reaction from the public was beautiful. There was already fanart of the interactions from today! Dream sat in a VC with a few others, relishing in the glory they’d created. 

“This is so cool! I love watching Twitter explode after these big streams,” Tubbo beamed.

“It’s really something,” Quackity chimed in. 

Dream leaned back in his chair, listening to them chatter. His mind bounced all over the place, jumping from thought to thought. He was mainly excited. The SMP was going a long way, better than he’d ever thought it would. He could only thank Wilbur, 

“What am I supposed to do in exile?” Tommy whined. “That’s gonna be so boring!”   
“We can figure something out. We can build a house or something,” Wilbur responded, his Ghostbur effects gone now that no one was live. 

“Mm, I guess,” Tommy grumbled in response. 

“Oh, Tubbo, I wanted to say that I thought you had a wonderful performance today. Your lines had so much power!” Wilbur added. 

Dream smiled, deciding to join in. 

“It really was great.” 

“Thank you! I do try. I can’t wait to see the SAD-ist animatic for this one!” Tubbo laughed, clapping. 

“It’s gonna be awesome,” Quackity yawned. “I should get going. See you boys, later!” 

After a chorus of “Goodnight” and “Bye Big Q!”, he left the call. 

“I think I’m gonna head off soon, too. Tubbo wanna go to another VC?” Tommy offered. Tubbo agreed and they both headed off into a different call. 

Now it was just Dream and Wilbur in the call. After a long awkward silence, Wilbur spoke up. 

“Why were you late to the event today? You’re never late, Dream,” he asked softly. 

“Ah, well, I fell asleep on my couch last night. It wasn’t very comfortable. Didn’t sleep too well.” Dream sipped his now cold coffee, finishing it off. 

“Got anything on your mind?” Wilbur continued. He seemed to have noticed how quiet Dream was being today. His concern was reasonable, giving that he was feeling off. 

“Mm, well I did have a weird dream. It was about the SMP, actually. It was like I was really there,” he laughed it off. “It was really cool, to be honest.”   
“Ooh, do you have a dream journal? You should write that down,” the brit suggested.

“A dream journal?” Dream asked. The idea just seemed a bit redundant. 

“Yeah! I think it’s a great idea. It’s really fitting for you, you know,” Wilbur teased. 

“I’ll consider it.” 

Dream adjusted his headset, staring up at the wall. 

“Well, it’s late here, I’m going to head off now. Goodnight, Dream.”   
“Night, Wilbur,” he responded, leaving the call right after. 

That was awkward. 

He wondered if he should tell anyone else about his dream. It was still fresh in his mind despite so much happening that day. He stood up and stretched, grabbing his phone and empty coffee cup. He headed to the kitchen, setting the mug gently into the sink. Patches circled his feet, as usual, watching him with wide yellow eyes. He crouched down to pet her, kissing the top of her head before standing back up. 

“What do you need, hm?” Dream asked sweetly, his tone caring and warm. He looked around before spotting her water bowl. “Oh, I know.” He grabbed it, filling it with cool water. He set it down, careful to not spill any on the tile. He watched her drink for a moment before heading back to his room. Dream sat back at his PC, getting ready to edit the main channel video for the month. He had to get this out at least by Christmas, so there was a lot to be done. He really hoped that he could finish it before then. 

After about an hour of mind-numbing editing, the sun had fully disappeared behind the night sky. The wildlife outside of his window buzzed and hummed, starting to settle in for the evening. Dream found his mind wandering once again. Maybe Wilbur was right, a dream journal could be fun. Considering he could still almost perfectly piece the scenes together in his head, it wasn’t much work. He enjoyed writing, anyway. It had been a side passion of his for a long time. 

Dream stood and shut off his computer for the night, making sure to save everything before it hummed off to sleep. He flopped down onto his bed, stretching out. He grabbed his phone from where it sat charging and got to writing. 

He recounted everything from the dream as vividly and intensely as he could with words. The feeling of the enchanted armor was almost impossible to describe, as well as the water in the Church of Prime. His best just seemed to not capture it perfectly and it was starting to irritate him. It was an itch he couldn’t scratch or a tag on the back of his collar, just plain annoying. Maybe this whole “dream journal” thing wasn’t his cup of tea. It was ironic in a way. Dream couldn’t write down his dreams? Might as well just rebrand entirely. 

As the dusk turned to dark and the stars started to peek through the blinds, Dream yawned. The clock on his phone read it to be around eleven, so he figured he better head off for the night now. He wanted to be up earlier to talk to George and Sapnap in the morning, anyway. He slid out of bed and got ready to go right back in, brushing his teeth, feeding Patches, and checking the door locks. As he settled in for the night, he struggled to turn off his mind. It was still whispering ideas and thoughts in his ear, keeping him awake like a fly that he just couldn’t swat away. He closed his eyes and rolled over, just waiting for sleep to take him somewhere interesting tonight. 

Dream opened his eyes for the second night in a row and found himself face to face with a wall of obsidian, pickaxe in hand. He gasped as his eyes adjusted to the dark. Next to him was the pond and the Camarvan, which now looked like an actual van. The wheels were kept in place with small blocks of wood shoved on either side of them. The houses of L’manberg stood tall in the distance, sturdy and strong above the crater that Wilbur made. With a look to the left, the L’Mantree stood tall, the leaves waving in the midnight breeze. 

Again?

He shifted the pickaxe in his hand, watching the enchanting glow for a moment. He tried switching to an empty hand but found he had none. He swiped his hand across the air, surprised to find his inventory full of obsidian. Stacks upon stacks of it. He moved the stack that was in his hotbar to the one empty slot left, leaving him with an empty hand. It was mesmerizing, watching items disappear as he switched around his inventory slots. 

Dream closed his inventory now, looking around at the world. He really should try and explore more. He may not end up here ever again. It would be good to put in his dream journal if he ever wanted to. He started to head out of the country, deciding to go left towards spawn. 

“Where are you going? These walls aren’t gone yet!” 

He whirled around to see Fundy standing there. Dream gasped and just stared at him for a long moment. To put it quite literally, he was a fox! Well, not fully. He had a human face and body, but bright orange fox ears stuck out of his hat. They were just impossible not to look at. He was pretty sure he saw whiskers as well...

“Uh, taking a break?” Dream paused. “I could put these walls right back up if I wanted. Don’t test me!” He shook his fist almost comedically. He figured that he should at least act in character while he was here. He didn’t want to make things harder for him.

“I need to finish my house! You better hurry back,” Fundy huffed, crossing his arms. An iron axe appeared in his hand and he started walking towards Dream. A moment of panic quickly subsided when Fundy turned towards the L’mantree. 

“Yeah-” Dream started, but his eyes went straight down and he laughed.

Was that a fucking tail?! 

Fundy turned around quickly, his cheeks red. 

“Quit looking at it!” He held his tail behind him, starting to walk backwards to the staircase. Dream held back his laughter, putting up his hands as he walked away. He hurried off towards the area Karl built just outside of Mexican L’Manberg, smiling at the colors. It wasn’t that well lit, so it was a bit hard to see. He stepped up to what he assumed was a kissing booth, bending over to read a sign. As he read, something shuffled behind him a moment later and he frowned. He drew his axe before slowly turning around. 

Dream found himself face to face with a walking corpse. Its face was practically melting off of its skull and the stench, oh god the stench. He gagged and stepped backward inside of the kissing booth, knocking over the sign in the process. The zombie trudged towards him, letting out a horrific groan. Dream tried to look up at it a second time, holding his axe out in front of him, but felt his stomach lurch at the sight. He instead shut his eyes tight and blindly swung the weapon, hoping to hit where it mattered. 

He heard a loud crunch and then the horribly wet sound of guts spilling onto the ground. The smell rapidly got worse, hitting his nose like a punch in the face. He gagged and doubled over, avoiding looking at the mess all over the floor of the kissing booth. Sounds outside alerted him of more terrors waiting in the dark, but he couldn’t just stay here with these remains. He put a hand out, aimlessly searching for the exit. The scent of rotting flesh seemed to be getting worse with every second he wasted. His stomach did another flip, urging him to get out. 

Dream took a careful step forward, his boot landing right in the mess. His breath hitched and stomach acid in his throat threatened his lunch for the second time. He decided to just book it, opening his eyes and praying that there weren’t more monsters outside waiting for him. He ran out of the booth, almost slipping on his way out. He passed more mobs. Zombies groaned in his direction and arrows whizzed past his head, but the adrenaline in his legs didn’t stop pumping. He ran to Punz’s house, heading inside and slamming the door shut. 

The walls rattled with the impact, but then it was silent. Dream sat down in front of the doors, making sure that nothing else would open them. He looked at his boot, cringing at the little bit of mess left after his frantic run. He sighed and tried to catch his breath, hand going to his head to remove his helmet. He needed fresh air after that. He slid down his hood and went to take off the mask, fumbling around for a clip or ribbon to undo. 

When he didn’t find one, Dream frowned. He reached up to just pull off the porcelain prison, but it wouldn’t budge. He clawed at it, his heart rate picking up once again. 

“No, no, no! Please, oh god-” He gasped, breathless. He could feel sweat dripping down his forehead, visualizing his distress. He was down on his knees now, desperately trying to pull the mask from his face. The harder he pulled, the more it hurt. It felt like someone was trying to rip his skin from his bones. It was more intense than having all ten of your fingernails ripped off, all at once. He cried out in agony, tears rushing down his cheeks. He let go of his mask, just to stop the pain. It stung, it burned. He panted, his breaths heavy and labored. 

He was trapped! This thing was part of him forever! He tried to take deep breaths and calm down, but ended up in a coughing fit. 

“Are you okay?!” A voice gasped over his soft cries. 

Dream looked up, face to face with Captain Puffy. She was even more of an animal than Fundy, the only thing even human-like being her body and clothing. Her arms were covered in wool and giant sheep-like ears stuck out on either side of her pirate’s hat, accompanied by large ram horns. She hurried over, crouching in front of Dream.

“Oh dear, you’re bleeding!” She spoke softly, her tone caring and warm. 

Dream didn’t say anything, just staring up at her blankly as he tried to calm his breathing. He was bleeding? Did the zombie bite him? He watched as Puffy pulled a small handkerchief from her pocket, gently putting a hand on Dream’s chin so he’d look up at her. He gasped and started to back away, but Puffy shook her head. 

“I just want to clean this up for you, it’s okay Dream,” she reassured him delicately. She swiped the cloth under his chin, right along the rim of the mask. Dream whimpered a bit, cringing at the sting. Did he pull it that hard? He hadn’t meant to.

Puffy pulled her hand away after a moment, showing him the now bloody handkerchief.

“I don’t know how you did this, but please be more careful,” she sighed. She reached down to her belt, unhooking a glowing bottle. She held it out to him. It radiated a soft pink light, lighting up her hand as she slid it into his. “This should help.”   
Dream took the potion, looking at it a moment. How was he supposed to drink this? He looked up at Puffy again, who was looking at him expectantly, then back to the bottle. He pulled out the cork and decided to just try it. As he held up the bottle to take a drink, it seemed to phase through the mask. He gasped, taking a drink of it before holding it back out for her to take the rest back. It felt too precious to waste a huge amount on himself. Puffy shook her head and pushed the bottle back towards his chest, insisting that he keep it. 

“I know you have a few of your own, but I think you need this more than I do,” she laughed sweetly, standing back up. She smoothed down her skirt and looked around for anyone else, peering out the window for a moment. Dream grabbed his helmet again and slid it on his head, not putting on the hood this time. 

“Thank you..” He looked down, hooking the bottle on to his own belt. He looked out the window to see what was going on. The sun was starting to rise, so the monsters were starting to burn. He had a feeling that wouldn’t smell very good…

“It’s no problem... What happened?” Puffy asked, her inhuman features hinting at concern. 

“Ah, just an accident. I fell and uhm... got scratched.” He nodded, trying to sound sure of himself. Puffy rose an eyebrow, looking him up and down. 

“Alright... Well, please take care of yourself. You’ve had an eventful day, after all,” she smiled softly. She headed over to the door, opening it. The sun was just over the horizon and the sounds, and smells, of burning monsters wafted inside. Dream made a bit of a face. 

“I’ll see you later, Puffy.” He waved, watching her go. She waved back and skipped off down the Prime path. 

Dream turned back around, opening the door to Punz’s chest room. A skeleton that had been waiting for him behind said door aimed its bow right at his neck. He screamed and scrambled to close the door, but the arrow was already fired. 

For the second night in a row, Dream woke up in a cold sweat. He sat up and quickly went to check the time, grabbing his phone. It was five in the morning this time. He didn’t know if that was better or worse. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay but i had to do it to fundy and puffy cmon  
> leave some feedback in da comments thanks <3


	3. Monster Hunting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream gets into the swing of things, literally. He has an axe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW very slight gore.

Dream laid restless until the sun started to peek through his window. He tossed and turned, but he couldn’t get back to sleep. He didn’t want to after what happened in his dream. As the clock hit seven, he grabbed his phone and sat up, pulling up the dream journal. He typed for a good half an hour, his neck starting to ache from sitting for so long. 

After rereading his words and adjusting a few things, Dream turned off his phone. He might as well get up now. He slid out of bed and into his chair, sighing. Patches jumped up into his lap, brushing her head against his hand. He mumbled a small good morning and kissed her forehead, smiling softly. He leaned down and pressed the button to turn on his computer. That manhunt wasn’t going to finish itself. 

Halfway through editing, his discord started blowing up. Sapnap and Karl were pinging him to wake up and join VC with them, George, and Quackity. He laughed softly and saved his edits before joining. 

“What-” 

“DREAM! You need to decide this for us right now,” Sapnap practically yelled into the mic. 

“Wha- Are you live?” Dream yawned, adjusting his microphone slightly. 

“I am and Big Q is.” George paused before adding, “Look, this is stupid. I think your name is stupid, Sapnap. You’ve already lost.”

“We’re trying to rename Mexican L’manberg,” Quackity filled him in. 

“I... No, I think SapnapVille is a perfectly good name for it,” Sapnap huffed. 

“SapnapVille?!” Dream snorted, encouraging Karl to giggle along with him. 

“See! It’s stupid. We’re not naming it after you.” Dream could just hear George roll his eyes. 

Dream opened Twitch, clicking on to George’s stream. He muted it and watched the chat fly by. Name suggestions were being thrown out left and right, it was hard to keep up with everything. As the others bickered over the name, his eyes wandered to George’s webcam. He watched him argue with the others, smiling softly. He was so lively on stream and it was pretty entertaining. 

As he watched, Dream found himself comparing George to the one he saw in his dream. They had the same face, but they seemed like completely different people. This George was happy and almost carefree, ready to entertain an audience and have fun. From the little he’d seen of the other, he could already tell he wouldn’t be the same. Maybe he just needed to spend more time with him, if that was even possible. 

“What do you think Dream?” Quackity asked, pulling Dream back into the conversation. 

“Huh? About what?” Dream looked over at the discord, feeling a bit ashamed that he hadn’t been listening. 

“Is it Nimrod November all over again?” Karl asked, gasping. 

“Did you just wake up or something?” Sapnap teased.

“Oh come on, just tell me already.” He rolled his eyes. 

“We’re renaming it El Rapids!” Quackity announced, laughing. 

The stream went on for another half an hour. More suggestions were thrown about, but nothing fit quite like El Rapids. A bit of lore ensued after Dream had left the call, but not the server. He had decided to stay on for a bit to walk around spawn, seeing what he wanted to see in his next dream. 

Dream roamed around his less travelled areas of the SMP. He hit Pogtopia, took a tour around the houses in L’manberg as he worked on deleting more of the wall, and went to the newly formed El Rapids just to check it out.

He headed to Bad and Skeppy’s house next, looking up at the statues. He messed around with Puffy for a bit while he was there, wondering what she’d think if he told her about his dream. She was not that different from what he saw of her last night, at least not starkly different like George or Sapnap. 

Speaking of George, he really wanted to talk to him. Well, the other version of him. He wanted to see just how close they were. What if this George hated him or something? It would make sense after that first night. He’d never meant to dethrone him. He hadn’t even known that was going to happen until Bad said something. Some otherworldly force had moved his mouth and pushed words out that he’d never to say to George outside of the script...

That’s it!

He had a couple theories to test out tonight. 

Dream began getting ready for bed an hour earlier than usual, confusing Patches when he fed her. As he was checking his door locks, his phone buzzed. He looked over at it on the counter, wondering who texted him. He hurried over and picked it up, eager to get to bed. It was George. 

_G: you ok?_

_G: u were quiet earlier_

Dream smiled softly. George was always looking out for him, whether he knew it or not. 

_D: im alright_

_D: just didnt sleep well last night_

_D: i was about to go to bed now tbh_

George was typing almost immediately. 

_G: oh yea you should do that_

_G: we should sync up our sleep schedules_

Dream grinned. He’d been hoping George would say that. They’d been trying to sync up for months now. 

_D: are we actually gonna do it now?_

_G: yeah_

_G: i was just about to go to bed too_

_D: perfect_

_D: goodnight george <3_

_G: goodnight_

He laughed softly when George didn’t return the heart, rolling his eyes. He showed his affection differently. That was fine by him. 

He flicked off the lights and headed back to his room, stopping to brush his teeth before he slid into bed. He made sure his curtains were closed this time and got comfortable. He wanted to fall asleep as fast as he could, making sure everything was perfect so he wouldn’t have to get up. He hoped it’d be day this time.. 

Dream ended up on the prime path tonight, the sun high in the sky. He peered up, putting a hand above his eyes to shield them from the sunlight. From the looks of it, he wouldn’t have that long before the monsters were out. He decided he’d better hurry if he wanted to find George before then. 

He set out down the path towards spawn, passing the rubble that was once Tubbo’s house. Instead of floating blocks, it was a pile of charred wood and blackstone, chests left open and cracked all about the place. Bees worked away in their hives, buzzing softly into the busy sounds of daytime. The community house stood tall at the beginning of the path, branching off towards the portal. Dream headed that way, planning to steer completely clear of the nether. 

As he passed the portal, his nose crinkled. It smelled faintly of sulfur and something bitter he couldn’t quite place. Either way, he didn’t want to know what it smelled like when you stepped inside. He passed the tree farm, a smile creeping on to his face as he looked up at them. They were impressive when you didn’t just look at them as a resource. The sky high jungle trees with tempting vines, thick dark oak that looked big enough to live in, and jagged acacia trees looked pretty out of place here. 

Dream began to approach George’s house, or what was left of it. He expected to see a burned mess and disaster, but was pleasantly surprised when we saw the hobbit hole in perfect condition. He stepped over the bridge, adjusting his helmet. He was good. He could do this! Just take a deep breath and knock on the door. Not that hard, yeah? George might not even be home right now, so there was nothing to worry about. He raised his hand to knock on the door, holding his breath. 

Before his fist came even close to the wood, George opened the door. 

“George!” Dream yelped and stumbled back, stopping himself from practically punching his friend. 

“What are you doing here Dream?” His tone was flat and blunt, hitting Dream like the handle of his sword. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought. 

“I came to…” he paused. “To see if you’d fixed your house yet. It looks like you have so I’ll just be leaving then-” He turned to leave, wincing at the tension. 

“No, no. We need to talk.” George reached out, snatching his hood. Dream gasped sharply and went along with him, going inside the house. 

Once inside, George shut the door behind them and checked outside the window. He watched for a moment before closing the shutters and turning back to Dream. He slid his clout goggles to his forehead, taking a step forward. 

“What the hell is going on? First Sapnap is telling me that you don’t care about us, now you’re acting all weird! I saw you last night. With the zombie.” He poked Dream’s chest, getting up close to his face. Dream’s eyes went wide and he was actually glad for the mask for once. 

“I’m not being weird! I didn’t mean it like that, you know. Sapnap just took it that way. I care about you guys, you’re my best friends. We’re the Dream Team! I’d be nothing without you two,” he explained, putting up his arms. His back was up against the stone wall and George wasn’t giving him any room to move. 

George stared at him for a long time, his multicolored eyes narrowed. Dream hadn’t noticed that before, it was kind of fitting. He hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath until George stepped backward. 

“Okay, but that still doesn’t explain you and that zombie last night!” He huffed, crossing his arms. He avoided looking Dream in the eyes even though he couldn’t see them. 

Dream paused and looked down at his feet, cheeks pink under the mask. He knew he was going to stick out here as soon as he talked to Karl for the first time. They had to all be used to this, it was just the way it was here! He glanced out the window for a moment, noting that the sun was now setting. 

“Well?” George tapped his foot impatiently. “I’m waiting.” 

“Er, I’m not sure? I haven’t been feeling like myself,” Dream lied, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. “Maybe if you take me out monster hunting, I’ll get back to normal.” 

That wasn’t a weird offer, right? He needed to spend time with this George anyways! For research purposes, obviously. 

“Whatever you say Dream. I need some string either way.” George shrugged. He turned and opened a chest, digging around for a moment just to pull out a diamond helmet. Dream adjusted his own, feeling a bit subconscious without his hood up now. He watched the image of his friend slide on some armor and pull out a gleaming netherite sword. He drew his own axe, opening his inventory for a moment to equip his shield in his other hand. 

Once he was done, Dream looked up. George was staring at him expectantly, a small smirk on his lips. The tension in the room eased ever so slightly. 

“Ready yet?” He snickered. He had pulled his clout goggles back over his eyes, a helmet in their former place. Dream glanced out the window and gave a hesitant nod. He could do this! 

George opened the door and walked out, Dream following closely behind like a little duckling. He held his shield out, looking around frantically for anything that goes bump in the night. 

They ran into a skeleton first. Its bones rattled with every movement, aiming its bow almost carelessly. He gasped when he saw it, staring straight into the holes where its eyes should have been. George stepped forward and practically snapped it in half with his sword, taking it down in one fell swoop. Dream watched from behind, eyes practically sparkling with admiration for his friend’s bravery. 

“You have to do the next one,” George spoke sternly, pointing to a zombie heading their direction. Dream’s breath hitched and he stepped forward slowly. 

He was getting flashbacks at this point. The stench on this one wasn’t nearly as bad, so he raised his axe with shaky hands. One of its eyes was dangling out of its skull, providing quite the gruesome sight. As it got closer, he lifted his weapon to swing at it-

Buuut he missed and chickened out, running back behind George. He definitely couldn’t do this! He watched him take down the undead creature with ease and turn around to give Dream a stern glare. 

“What has gotten into you? Yeah, they don’t smell great, but Dream.” His face said serious business, but Dream knew that teasing tone too well. He looked away, his cheeks tinting pink with embarrassment. 

“I don’t know,” he mumbled. Maybe he just needed to find a different way of looking at it. He needed an objective. At this point, just “getting over it” wasn’t going to cut it for him. 

Another zombie approached them and an arrow went whizzing past George’s head. 

He pulled out his crossbow instead of the axe, aiming the already loaded weapon at the zombie. He put it up in front of his face, trying to think of where it would hit the creature. He imagined he was playing a first-person shooter game, lining up the arrow to its head. 

A game! That’s it! He just needed to think of this as it really was, just a big game. 

Dream shut one eye and fired the arrow, hitting the zombie square in the forehead. It fell over with a cry, hopefully dead. He heard bones rattle to his right as George got rid of the skeleton. He reloaded quickly, turning to hit whatever decided to cross his path next. 

“You finally got one! I’m so proud of you,” George teased, his voice ringing out into the seemingly empty night. Dream rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, yeah. I think I’m getting back to myself. All because of you Georgie,” he sang, pulling out his axe. George scoffed and walked a bit further, targeting a spider. Dream swung at a skeleton, surprised when it didn’t go down in one hit. He was really starting to get the hang of this, at least he thought he was. He occasionally watched George, picking up silent tips along the way. 

They made their way through the tree farm, heading right to the community house. Dream got into a rhythm of things. Swing, shoot, collect loot, repeat. It was effective, easy, and confident. He moved with a purpose and a goal. He counted how many monsters he killed, how many hits each took, and what he got from them. Mental goals drove him forward and made it easier to not focus on the gore and blood that he shed.

He'd caught George watching him a few times, a small smile on his face. This made him want to work harder. He wanted to impress him. No, he needed to. 

Dream held open the door for George, humming to himself. His friend walked in, laughing softly.

"There's my Dream," he started, then realized what he'd said and sighed.

"Oh your Dream? Do tell me more, Georgie," Dream grinned, sitting on the stairs to watch his friend. George rolled his eyes. 

"You know I didn't mean it like that." He leaned against a chest, stretching. "It's just you're back to the Dream I know." 

"Mhmm.. You like it when I'm big and strong, yeah?" Dream spoke without thought, the words just coming out of his mouth the moment they hit his brain. It was a flaw of his, really. 

Despite this, the reaction it got from George was glorious. He sputtered and shook his head, his cheeks blooming red. 

"No! Since when did I ever say that?" He asked, his voice going up an octave. He turned his head to the side, crossing his arms over his chest. He was asking for Dream to make fun of him, practically begging. 

"Your ears turn red when you get all flustered like this. It's cute," he snickered. Maybe that was too much. George put his hands over his ears, huffing. 

"You know what you're doing. Stop," George warned, visibly worked up. Dream didn't want to stop. He acted just how his George would. Stirring him up was entertaining in a way, and he wanted to see his friend spill over. 

"Oh do I now? Maybe you should tell me, Georgie," he purred. 

"Dream. Stop." George's tone turned sharp, his walls going back up. He turned away towards the door. Dream backed off, a bit ashamed. He hadn't meant to make him uncomfortable. 

"Alright.." He searched for something more to say, something to cut the sudden tension. He couldn't come up with anything, but lucky for him George found his voice again. 

"Look, I'm going to speak with Sapnap. I doubt the idiot will listen to me, but it's worth a try. He's just overreacting," he sighed, adjusting his glasses slightly. 

"Thanks... Please tell him that I didn't mean it like that. I really didn't, I promise," Dream responded softly, meeting George's eyes. 

"I will." He nodded and opened the door. "I'm going to go now. I'll see you later?" 

Dream smiled.

"Yeah. See you later." He nodded. 

He watched George leave before he started to sift through chests. There was mostly just crap there, but he didn't know what to do. The sun was starting to rise, which was always a good thing. Maybe he'd go find someone else and talk to them for a bit. 

Dream left the community house as mobs started to catch on fire outside. He wasn't sure how that worked here, but he wasn't complaining. The more work he didn't have to do, the better. 

He turned down the path towards the Prime Church, deciding to watch the rest of the sunrise from there. It was a beautiful sight, something almost otherworldly. The golden morning sunshine warmed the quartz building, giving it a bit of life where it was usually lacking. He settled himself down in a pew, closing his eyes. Despite the bright atmosphere, he began to drift off. It was peaceful for once. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Deffo flerting idk about y'all  
> Leave some suggestions about stuff you wanna see next! Just doing this for fun. Uploaded this chapter from my phone cuz it's almost 2am lol will probably edit this if I reread it later


	4. Stained Pink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream doesn't want to face the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry about the little break. took a break from writing for one day, that turned into a week or so-  
> Rip lol  
> THANK YOU 4 OVER 200 HITS !!!

Dream opened his eyes, expecting to see his bedroom. Instead, the brilliant quartz of the Church of Prime stood over him. He blinked a few times, waking up slowly. Was he still dreaming? Something was up, usually he woke up after just one night. 

He sat up slowly, stretching. He looked over to his right, jolting up from the pew when he saw two pairs of eyes looking straight at him. He pulled out his sword to attack, but lowered it as he realized who it was. 

The other person ducked down before Dream could see who it was. A fluffy head of brown hair poked up from behind the seat in front of him and smiled. 

“I didn’t know you slept, Dream,” Tubbo spoke after a second, not phased by the sword at all. 

“Er... I don’t. I was resting,” Dream muttered. He looked over the top to see who he assumed was Ranboo sitting there, shoved into the tiny space. He looked a lot like his Minecraft skin, split in half. A golden crown sat on top of a head of fluffy black and white hair and he could’ve sworn he saw horns there too. 

“Uh, hi,” Ranboo gave a small wave. Dream looked back to Tubbo. 

“Why are you two watching me?” he asked, leaning back. 

“We saw you and wanted to know if you slept!” Tubbo stood up. Ranboo then did the same, but Dream wasn’t expecting him to just keep going up. He had to be at least seven feet tall, and it threw him off. Dream stood after him, only coming up to about his shoulders. He frowned. 

“I was just napping. I don’t need to sleep,” Dream repeated. “That’s creepy you know, watching me sleep.” 

“Oh, we know,” Ranboo nodded. If he reached up, he could touch the ceiling. 

“Yeah, Ranboo said it was,” Tubbo laughed. 

“It is.” Dream looked over his shoulder. “So what are you two doing right now?” 

“We _were_ going to do some clean up around L’Manberg, but the wall isn’t gone yet.” Ranboo scratched the back of his head. Tubbo nodded in agreement. 

“Yeah, what is with that? You’re taking forever!” He crossed his arms. 

“You’re lucky that I’m taking it down at all,” Dream crossed his arms right back, narrowing his eyes to look down at Tubbo. “I don’t have to do anything you want.”

Tubbo blinked and stared blankly for a second, then shrugged. Something clicked in his head.

"Well, we should leave Ranboo!” He switched it up real quick, pushing the other from the pews. He gave an awkward wave before exiting the church. Tubbo played it off effortlessly, but the tension in Ranboo’s shoulders gave it away. Dream had scared them off. He didn’t know whether or not that was a good thing. 

The boys shuffled off down the grass and out of the Holy Land. Dream watched them go around and out of sight before he exited the church. He walked down the path and towards Eret’s castle. It was a peaceful afternoon, a light breeze sweeping across the path. He made it to the community house before he heard anyone. Voices travelled down to his ears from the portal. Dream carefully peeked over the stairs, curious. 

Karl, Sapnap, and a shirtless Quackity sat in a circle beside the portal, talking amongst themselves. Dream looked away for a second, holding back a laugh. This Quackity wasn’t the one he knew, but he really didn’t want to see that much of him. He shouldn’t be surprised. He looked back up, settling down on the stairs to listen. 

“You need to relax, Sap. I don't think he meant it like that," Karl reassured, a hand rubbing the other's back. 

It didn't take Dream long to figure out what they were discussing. 

"But.. You didn't hear him say it! It was obvious what he meant," Sapnap sighed. He leaned into Karl slightly. His usually scorching fire burned low with dwindling embers. Quackity reached forward and put a hand on his knee.

"Look, whether he meant it like that or not, Dream wouldn't just abandon you for some discs. You two have been here way before any of us! Nothing can break that bond," he spoke softly, his voice warm and comforting. 

"I know... I just... You know how he can be." Sapnap looked over in Dream's direction, out onto the horizon. 

Dream listened intently. He could feel something cracking inside as he watched, a sick feeling that he couldn't understand yet oozing out. He felt a twinge of jealousy with each touch the trio shared, something wishing for a taste of what they had. It twisted and pulled his heartstrings. He looked down. 

He didn't want to listen anymore. This wasn't his conversation to hear. He backed out down the stairs and through the community house, careful to not make a sound as he left. The sun retreated over the tree line, sliding the world into sleep. The moon remained a sliver tonight, providing little light in the darker areas of the SMP.

Dream turned down the Prime Path, trying to stay in a more well-lit area. His heart ached. He didn't mean to hurt Sapnap with his words. George must have not talked to him yet. What would he even say? It nagged at his mind, taking his attention. 

He found himself wandering off of it, heading towards the spider farm. He held his axe in one hand, shield secure on his opposite arm. He made it to the hole and looked down, the drop making his stomach swirl. Surely he would break something falling from this height. Water couldn't work like that in this world, right?

He climbed up onto the cobblestone, swinging his legs over the side. The drop loomed before him, his heart breaking into a sprint. No way he would survive that. 

As he stood to turn and leave, something hit him in the back. A skeleton rattled behind him and charged its bow once again. Before Dream could get down from the cobblestone, he was shot in the chest. The arrow didn't pierce his chest plate, but his feet went up in the air and his heartbeat roared in his ears as he toppled down the hole with a screech.

Before Dream could hit the ground, he sat up in bed. He tried to catch his breath, sweating and holding a hand over his chest. His phone buzzed on his bedside table incessantly. He grabbed it and turned off the alarm, laying back down. 

"What the hell.." he breathed, running an exhausted hand through his hair. Despite the full night of sleep he'd just gotten, he wasn't refreshed. He was drained. He wanted to go back to sleep, but he knew he couldn't. George would be mad that he messed up their sleep schedule on the first day. He even set an alarm so he wouldn't sleep in.

He dragged himself from bed despite his wishes, trudging to the kitchen for coffee and something to eat. 

As his breakfast brewed, he checked his phone. He had a few messages from the Discord server, but he didn't miss anything lore wise. Sometimes, it pays to wake up on time. Patches circled his feet as he leaned against his kitchen counter, scrolling absentmindedly on his phone. 

A text came through just as he was pouring his coffee. He grabbed his phone, blowing on his mug to try and cool it off. George's name sat at the top of his screen. 

_G: you better be awake_

Dream smiled softly. He didn't think the other would wake up on time.

_D: sadly_

_D: i wanna go back to sleeep_

_G: you just slept 10 hours_

_G: why r u tired_

_D: idk_

Dream moved to his couch, waiting on his toast. He hadn't gotten a good night's sleep since these dreams had started. This was the third night in a row and they couldn't just be coincidences anymore. He was losing quality sleep because of these dreams.

He watched George type, the three dots in the corner disappearing a moment before coming back again. The next message popped up.

_G: r u sick?_

_D: no_

_D: I keep having some weird dreams I guess_

_G: weird_

_G: what kind of weird_

_G: if its what Im thinking it is i dont wanna hear about it_

Dream snorted.

_D: it's not one of those dreams_

_D: get ur head out of the gutter_

_G: what was it then_

Dream began to type out some of his dream, then paused. He honestly didn’t want to type out the whole thing. 

_D: its pretty long_

_D: can we just call?_

_G: sure_

Dream hit the call icon, putting his phone up to his ear. It rang once before George picked up. 

“I thought you meant on Discord,” he mumbled, his voice low and sluggish. Dream smiled. 

“Mm, well I’m not at my computer right now,” he laughed softly. He sipped his coffee, frowning at the bitter taste. It needed something else, something sweet. 

“Tell me about the dream,” George yawned. 

“Okay sleepy,” Dream teased. “Well, you were in it.” He started. 

“Was I?” 

“Yeah. I mean, kind of. He looked like you. We were on the SMP. Well, it wasn’t in Minecraft,” he rambled, struggling as he explained it. “You were mad at me.” 

“What’d you do?” George laughed softly, shifting on the other side. 

“I don’t know. We went and fought some monsters and you forgot about it I guess,” Dream shared his laughter. He sounded so tired, it was honestly funny.

“Mhm, so you needed to call me for this?” 

“Oh, come on. There’s more to it. You’re just lazy.” 

“Mm, no. I’m not.” 

“Are you even out of bed yet, George?” Dream asked. There was silence for a moment, then more shuffling. “You’re not! I hear you getting up!” he grinned, stifling a laugh. 

“No, no! I’m up,” George cracked up, his smile showing through his words. 

“You are now,” Dream laughed. He ran a hand through his hair, leaning against the couch. “I’m surprised you’re even awake now. Did you set an alarm?” 

“Maybe…” George giggled. 

“You should get some breakfast, Georgie,” he grinned. 

Dream headed over to his kitchen, grabbing his breakfast from the toaster. He caught his own reflection in the silver and paused. His expression was bright and way too cheery for a Monday morning. He held the phone close to his face, pressing it against his cheek like it could somehow bring George closer to him. His smile faltered.

Oh no.

“What are you having this morning, Clay?” George asked. Dream blanked for a moment before grabbing his toast. He yelped and dropped his breakfast on the floor, holding his hand back. 

“Toast. It’s hot.” He turned on the sink, sliding his hand under the cool water. He sighed and closed his eyes, waiting for it to cool off. Wait-

“Be careful,” George continued. 

“What did you just call me?” Dream asked, turning off the sink. His breath stopped in his chest.

“Uhm, Clay? That’s your name. What, do you not like it?” 

Dream bit his lip. Goddammit.

“Oh, no. It’s fine. I just wasn’t expecting it,” he laughed it off. There was no reason for his best friend to make him feel this way. George shouldn’t make his stomach flip. George wasn’t supposed to push and pull Dream, moving him along through a sea of emotions. He made his face burn and stain pink. He warmed him even more than a boiling Florida summer, threatening to sear his skin if he got too close. 

He was going to be sick. 

“Dream?” George spoke again, tone dancing on concerned. 

“Huh?” 

“Just making sure you’re awake,” he breathed a laugh. 

Dream returned the laugh, leaning against his counter. He was tense, strings pulling him taught. He gripped his mug tightly. 

"Hah.. Yeah," he spoke softly after a moment, eyes on the floor. He didn't know what else to say. He was starting to feel himself shut down. 

"Mm, well I should go shower," George yawned again. 

Thank fuck. 

"Alright. See you later, Georgie," Dream paused. "Are you still going to stream tonight?"

"Yeah. You gonna join me?"

"Maybe for a bit." 

"Mhm, see you then, Dream."

"Bye." 

George hung up before Dream could pull the phone away from his face. He set it down on the counter, looking at the toast he dropped. Damn, well that was no good anymore. He picked it up, setting it next to his phone. He sipped his now cold coffee, sighing. 

Sure, George always gave him butterflies, but that's just how it was with him. Dream always got that warm, fuzzy feeling around his friend. Everyone probably felt the same with their best friend. 

Still, he didn't feel that way with Bad or Sapnap. They were both his best friends and all he felt with them was mild and lighthearted. His heart never raced or even skipped a beat. They were just friends, platonic and supportive of each other. 

Dream wanted to talk this over with Bad. He was always there for him and had helped him through so much without judgement. He'd be understanding as always, but he didn't want to admit it.

What would he even admit? He didn't have feelings for anyone, let alone George. Maybe he just needed a good sleep, he hadn't had one in a few days. Something urged him to get back to bed as soon as possible. 

Dream grabbed his phone once again, opening the notes app. He had to document last night. He hadn't told the whole story to George, but it was still fresh in his mind. As he tapped away, he hoped he could stay away from dream George from now on. He knew for a fact he wouldn't be able to look away the next time they were face to face. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> leave some feedback in the comments, I'm always looking to improve. Still exploring how I want to write irl George. I am also tryna move the plot along a little more so I can write some more fun stuff and keep the chapters from feeling like filler, so the pacing may be a bit weird


	5. Everything? Everything.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream experiences even more conflicting feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UHH THANK YOU FOR A LOT OF READS MWAH I LOVE U ALL

The rest of the day crawled along at a snail’s pace. Dream yearned for the sun to set and to settle into bed again. For now, he sat at his desk, staring blankly at his monitor. 

He was conflicted. Most of him wanted to shy away from this feeling, to retreat back into his usual routine and ignore all emotion. It was overwhelming to even consider - loving someone. Especially someone that you’ve known for what felt like an eternity. Someone that you’ve never even seen face to face. Someone who can’t even picture what you look like. How hard could that be on George? 

Somewhere, a tiny yet strong urge to feed into this sensation grew. Each time he talked to George, in his unconscious or waking hours, it gained more footing. He wanted to tease, to cause chaos, to create discomfort, and feel the adrenaline that came along with it. Diving deep into this feeling could get him into even more trouble. This passion brought the risk of going too deep and drowning. Dream didn’t know if he wanted to risk it. 

He refreshed his Twitch page, waiting for George to start streaming. The sun hung low in the sky, leaving his room in little to no light. Thoughts bounced around his mind, repeating the day’s worries. All he wanted was to lay down and have a dreamless sleep. He didn’t want to think or feel anything. Waking up in sweat and sometimes even tears exhausted him. 

It was safe to say that he wasn’t doing too good. He needed a distraction. 

He’d tried to get one earlier that day, accompanying Tommy for the first part of his exile. No armor, no items. It was an interesting experience. Dream’s character was being set up and Tommy’s character was going through a huge change. Personally, he really enjoyed watching the story play out. It was a nice break from his thoughts.

Another reload and George’s stream popped up. He smiled and turned on the volume. George appeared on the screen a moment later, smiling and greeting the stream. Dream laid his head in his hand, reading the chat absentmindedly. People wanted him to visit Tommy and say hi, among other things. 

Dream launched Minecraft on his other monitor. He said he’d join the stream, so he was sticking to his promise. He joined the server, standing in front of the community house. 

“Oh, Dream is on!” George spoke from his stream after a moment. Chat immediately started spamming his name. “We can see if he wants to call in a bit.” 

Dream sighed and looked around for George. He didn’t want to call now, but he could follow him around on the server for a bit. He eventually met him at his hobbit house, standing on the bridge. He crouched in front of his friend, waiting to hear him on the stream. The delay was annoying. 

“Oh, hi Dream,” George smiled. His friend hit him in-game, which prompted Dream to crouch and look down. He went into F5 mode, grinning.

“Oh, he’s sad. Why are you sad, Dream?” George cooed. Dream looked up and shook his head, going back to his sad act. He was just playing it up for the stream. This was starting to take his mind off of things; the reactions from chat, the clips that he knew were gonna be on Twitter, everything about it just lifted the weight off of his shoulders. Even if it lasted just a few minutes, it was better than nothing.

“Should we call him now? Dream, do you wanna call?” George asked, facing him. 

Dream crouched in front and nodded. He’d psyched himself up enough. He minimized Twitch and joined the call with George. 

“Hey Dream,” George greeted. 

“Hi,” he responded. He looked back to the game, avoiding the onset of irritating thoughts that came with hearing George’s voice. He smacked him in-game. 

“What was that for?” George huffed, smacking him right back.

“Mm, revenge,” Dream hummed. He started to run off. This was where he met George in his dream. He wasn’t sure if it was coincidental or not. 

“Oh, whatever Dream.” Some part of him wished George would say his name like he had that morning. He pushed aside the intrusive thought and tried to focus on entertaining the stream. 

“What’s your plan for today?” he asked. 

The stream hummed along slowly. As it continued, the weight on Dream’s shoulders was back. The thoughts he’d wanted to avoid invaded his mind and yanked him away from reality. At times, he felt like he was sitting and watching his body just go on autopilot. He was quiet, and when he did talk his answers were short and restrained.

He didn’t want to think about how he could, just possibly, like his best friend in a romantic way. It just didn’t make sense! These feelings felt illegal, like he could lose the entire friendship if he so much as looked a George. The fuse was already lit and approaching the end, sparks flying. 

Even chat could tell Dream was tense. His laughter felt forced and even George, who normally didn’t acknowledge these things, seemed concerned. 

“Dream? Are you okay?” 

Dream blinked and looked over at Discord, startled. He wasn’t going to talk about this on stream, if at all. 

“I’m just tired.” It was half the truth. The chat sped up as more people asked if he was okay. 

“Is it because we’re doing the sleeping together thing again?” George asked, then gasped shortly after. “Wait I didn’t mean it like that-” 

Oh, but it was too late. The clips flew by. 

“Pfft- George!” Dream cracked up, hitting his microphone in the process. 

“No no, I meant we’re sleeping... Like, at the same time! Not  _ together  _ like that,” he stuttered. 

“Whatever you say, George,” Dream hummed, spamming shift in front of George. 

“Wha- Dream!” He could hear George’s face go red. 

The spark flickered.

“What? I didn’t do anything,” he pushed. 

“ _ Dream _ .” George’s voice was strung up high now. 

“Oh, come on now. What is it, George?” He walked up to him in-game, crouching before throwing a poppy in his direction. George picked it up and held it a moment.   
“Now you’re just being annoying,” he scoffed. He turned and threw the poppy back to Dream, who crouched and looked down again. 

"You're being so mean, George," Dream whined. He was glad to have the focus off of his feelings. He did not need chat to make this whole thing worse. 

"Aww, Dream. Need me to kiss it better?" George pandered to the chat, but only fed Dream's fantasies. 

“No- I don’t need that,” Dream responded quickly, taking his finger off the shift key. He walked away, putting distance between them. George followed, sprint jumping after him. He didn’t say anything else, silently staring at the wall that had been put up between the two. 

The spark fizzled out, leaving him in the dark. 

The rest of the stream was tense, awkward, and frankly went on for too long. The chat continued to ask if Dream was okay, none of which he responded to. He didn’t want them to worry, but he feared any response he gave wouldn’t be convincing enough.

As he settled in for the night, Dream found himself dreading sleep. He contemplated what would happen if he saw George. Would he be able to keep himself away? What if George wanted to talk to him? Surely he’d talked to Sapnap, maybe he had a response. He would have to talk to him then, right? 

He laid down in bed, trying to get comfortable. His eyelids hung heavy, but restless energy plagued the rest of his mind and body. He wanted to pull George close, offer him a place in his arms, hold him close and hold him tight. It would be sweet and warm, something he’d been missing for a while. They would be stuck together and safe. George would be his and Dream would be George’s. 

They could be glorious. 

He let himself dive into fantasy, allowing it to rock him to sleep. It was freeing, an addicting rush of adrenaline, to let himself divulge into something that felt so wrong. His thoughts flashed images of a life he couldn’t touch as he slipped off into his dreamland. 

When his eyes opened again, he was standing in a field. His axe, Nightmare, laid heavy in hand. He switched to an empty slot, watching the weapon disappear. His stomach flipped as he looked around, slowly recognizing the area

The plains stretched out for miles, bordered by sturdy oak and tall birch. The dreadful hum of the nether portal hit his ears, whispering to him. He stepped further away from it, eyes panning to the right. 

A small cotton tent pitched by the seaside stood out against the beach, its cloth waving in the breeze. The salty smell of the water wafted into his nose, quiet waves brushing the sandy beach. Further to the left, a half-finished structure of stripped logs rose above the trees.

Footsteps alerted him of someone approaching and he drew his axe again. He looked over and locked eyes with someone much younger than him, who held a bundle of sticks in front of a tarnished red and white shirt. His expression fell as he spotted Dream.

“Tommy,” Dream acknowledged. 

“Hi... Dream,” the boy sighed, looking down. He set his sticks on the ground. 

Dream switched to his shovel, starting to dig a hole. His body seemed to move on its own. As soon as the hole was dug, he turned back to Tommy. 

“Yeah, I know.” Tommy started to dump his things in the hole, taking off his iron chest plate. Dream watched silently, waiting until he was done before placing TNT above the hole. 

“That’s everything?” It wasn’t much. 

“Yes. Everything.” Tommy looked away, expression hopeless. 

Dream pulled out his bow and drew back an arrow. As soon as he released it, the tip of the arrow burst into flames. It hit the TNT and ignited it, causing it to fall. He placed cobblestone above and stepped back, away from the explosion. The bang was loud and almost startled him, but he managed to keep his composure. Tommy, on the other hand, jumped and covered his face.

"I just don't get it!"

"Don't get what?" Dream asked simply.

"Why I'm out here." Tommy stared at the ground. He sat down, legs crisscrossed, and pulled at the grass.

"You're dangerous. It's better for you." Dream looked to the sky, watching as a bird flew over them. 

"But I'm not..." Tommy spoke softly, voice low and small. He was only sixteen, after all.

That didn't excuse his actions, though.

"You burned down George's house, you've started too many fights. This is the best for everyone." Dream sat down next to him in the grass, watching the sun start to disappear behind the sea. 

"Not for me," he mumbled, poking the dirt with a stick. 

"Look, Tommy. Let's just watch the sunset. Maybe we can get someone to visit soon, alright?" Dream looked over, expression softening. He pitied the boy. He didn't want him to do something drastic, so he had to keep him happy. It was the least he could do, given that he had to watch over him from now on. 

"Whatever…" Tommy sighed, closing his eyes. Dream watched the sun until it was completely gone, then stayed there in the dark, peaceful. Torches provided just enough light to keep them safe from any mobs. 

He looked up, hoping to see stars, but just got a raindrop in his eye. A light drizzle came out of nowhere, covering the night sky with a blanket of clouds. 

"Let's go inside, Tommy." Dream stood, looking back at the younger boy. He was slumped over, arms draped over his knees, snoring softly. Dream sighed and walked over, picking him up gently. He held the other under his shoulders, using his free arm to support his legs. Tommy leaned into him, head on his shoulder as he slept. Dream didn't want him to sleep out in the rain - he would get sick.

He walked Tommy over to his tent, careful to make sure he wouldn't fall. He laid him in bed and tucked him in.

"Sleep well, Tommy," he sighed. The usually energetic blonde looked so peaceful for once. Maybe this was for the best. He watched a moment longer to make sure that Tommy was actually asleep before leaving the tent. 

Rain pitter-pattered off of his helmet, sliding down and soaking his hoodie. Dream ended up putting up his hood again as the drizzle turned to a downpour. He needed to find some shelter. He walked down the path and through the night, heading towards the violet glow of the nether portal. 

The portal whispered to him again, a tempting warmth hitting his soaking clothes as he got closer. He would definitely dry off in the Nether. He knew the way back to the community house. Maybe it wouldn't be as bad as he thought. After all, he went there all the time. 

He stepped on the obsidian and stuck his arm into the swirling light. He watched as it was distorted and twisted, but didn't feel any different. He deemed the experience safe and walked in, letting the light engulf him fully. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tommy appearance very sad, dream didnt even point out its all rp tho huh? interesting...  
> shoutout to my editor she's so pog, love her passive-aggressive comments, makes my writing much better


	6. Fantasy Alive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For someone who spends so much time sleeping, Dream sure is tired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW// violence and blood

Dream phased through dimensions, the experience was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. His body was light and he was floating one minute, but as the Nether came into view his weight hit him all at once. The heat was the first thing he noticed. His previously wet clothing hissed, steam evaporating into the humid air. 

The scent hit him next. He coughed, wincing as the sulfuric smell invaded his senses. It was horrible. He went to plug his nose, but ended up slamming his hand into the mask. 

"Shit," he huffed. He would have to deal with it. 

Dream stepped down from the portal and took in the sights. The scorching reds of the Nether were a huge change from Tommy's base. Another step and he could look over into the looming lava pool below. His heart flipped and he stepped backward, hand over his chest. Oh god. 

A precarious bridge stretched over the drop, made of wood and bits of cobblestone. He knew he would have to cross it to get back to the portal, but he didn't want to. A ghast or piglin could come up and shoot him right to his fiery death at any moment!

Against his better judgment, Dream stepped forward. He needed to talk to George and he couldn't stall any longer. The way back through the overworld would be long and tiring, especially at night. He wondered which way was more dangerous, stalling.

He finally decided this would be best and stepped one foot out onto the bridge, practically trembling. A quick scan around him showed that there were only a few zombie pigmen around. They were disturbing, but no threat to him unless he made them one. 

He slid another foot onto the bridge, holding his arms out to keep balance. He did his best to keep from swaying or losing his balance. The wood under his boots seemed sturdy enough to support him, but he didn't know how long it would last. He shuffled along slowly, barely picking up his feet as he went. He had to do this. He wanted to talk to George.

Dream continued to drag his feet along the bridge, crouching slightly to keep his center of balance. He kept his eyes away from the lava, knowing that he would freak out and probably fall if he looked down. The bridge turned from wood to obsidian, giving him a little bit of breathing room. Obsidian couldn’t burn up or crumble, so it was a relief. Despite this, he continued to slide along until the bridge got wider. When he felt like he could walk safely, he stood up straight again and carefully walked towards the portal. 

A ghast cried from somewhere behind him, but Dream decided it was best to ignore it unless it started to shoot him. The longer he spent in the Nether, the more used to the smell he got. The heat was starting to get to him, though. His previously wet clothes were now completely dry and sweat dripped down his forehead. 

The portal came into view, standing out against the rest of the Nether. Dream picked up the pace, starting to jog down the last remaining bit of the bridge. He got to the doorway and was met with the flash of a sword in his face. 

A piglin yelled out, knocking him back onto the bridge. Dream gasped and brought up his shield, blocking another hit. He drew his sword and stepped back, boots scraping on the black stone beneath them. The piglin attacked mindlessly, swinging and advancing with ease. Dream continued to back up, his heart racing. 

“Shit!” he cursed. Of course, the piglins were mad at him. He wasn’t wearing any gold! He huffed and pushed forward slightly, jabbing his sword out in front of him blindly. The piglin cried and growled back at him, so he assumed he hit it. He looked above his shield just long enough to meet eyes with the creature. Its head was like a pig’s, ears sticking out on either side. A large golden ring stood out on its nose, catching his attention. The creature cried out again, pushing forwards. He stumbled back, thrown off of his balance. He tried to put distance between him and the monster, but when he put his foot back, it didn’t land on solid ground. 

Dream gasped and threw a glance over his shoulder, eyes wide as he saw the lava below. He stumbled slightly and tried putting his foot back on the bridge, scraping the edge. Debris broke off and crumbled to dust. The piglin continued to advance, not giving him any room to move. He tried to shove his shield in front of himself to push forward. 

He put out his arms to his sides, trying to get back on the platform. The piglin took this opening and raised its sword, slashing his shoulder. He screeched and fell backward, a sharp pain shooting through his body. He screamed as he fell, scrambling to find a way out.

Instinct kicked in and he opened his inventory, still plummeting toward the pit of molten rock. He grabbed a potion and quickly popped the top off, chugging the entire thing right as he went under the lava. 

Dream winced, waiting for a burning sensation or something painful. He carefully opened his eyes after a moment, holding his breath. He was definitely under the lava, but it felt like he was under water. He swam up to the surface, shaking the magma from his face and hair. 

He was completely unharmed. Hell, he felt great!

He swam to the shore, dragging himself up to the edge. Drops of lava sizzled and steamed as he shook them off his armor. He leaned against the basalt behind him, taking a deep breath. 

The Nether wasn't bad when you didn't have to worry about the heat. He smiled, laughing softly in spite of himself. He stuck his leg into the lava in front of him, kicking some up. The potion effects raced through his veins, chilling him from the inside out.

He watched the portal from below, waiting until he saw the piglin leave to move. The trek back up wasn't as bad as the first time. He was confident he wouldn't die this time, so he made it through the portal and into the Overworld. 

The community house swirled into view, the sensation leaving Dream nauseous. His weight hit him next, not making the feeling any better. The sun was pretty high in the sky, which was good for him. 

As he headed down the stairs, his shoulder started to ache. He stopped on the bridge, sitting down. That piglin caught him off guard. Maybe he needed more training. He looked through his inventory, grabbing food. He snacked on some bread, taking a moment to just relax. 

He was exhausted! First dealing with Tommy's exile then the incident in the Nether... It was a lot for one day. He sighed softly, letting his feet dangle into the lake. A fish swam by his boot, tapping it before moving on. 

Despite everything, he still wanted to go see George. He knew that would probably end up with some sort of fight, but he didn't care. He just wanted to spend more time with him, face to face. He wanted to know if what he felt for him was real or not.

He finished his bread and sighed, stretching with a groan. His shoulder didn't hurt when he moved. He looked at it and gasped, seeing the cut perfectly healed. All that was left in its place was a light scar. Too bad the hoodie wasn't fixed. He'd have to do that himself. 

Dream stood and looked around, trying to see if anybody was near him. They were probably all around L'Manburg, so he didn't think he'd run into anyone. He looked up the stairs to his left, towards George's house. He may as well go see if he was home. 

The sun was starting to set when Dream knocked on the door. He waited patiently, tapping his foot on the path. He sighed softly and tried to peek through the shutters. The house was empty. George wasn’t even home. There’s no telling where he could be. The world was quite literally infinite! 

Dream sighed and sat down, leaning against the front door. He stared up at the sky, eyes starting to drift closed. A little nap couldn't hurt. He was so tired after today, anyways. 

Hours passed before he opened his eyes again. The first thing he saw was George, standing over him. He was too sleepy to say anything just yet, so he just shifted his head to the side. He locked eyes with his friend, watching him silently. George couldn't know he was awake yet, so he took advantage of that. 

The little light around them didn't give Dream the best view, but he could still make out some features. This included the freckles that dotted half of George's face, sprinkling his cheek. He hadn't noticed that before. His eyes moved to George's again, admiring them. One eye was brown while the other had a splash of blue.

"So pretty…" he sighed. 

"Dream? Are you awake?" George asked. His eyebrows shot up, giving his friend a bit of a look. 

"Mm, did I say that out loud?" Dream laughed it off. He looked away, shifting on the grass. George's cheeks tinted pink.

"Yes. What are you doing outside my door?" George sat down across from him. He settled his head in his hand, elbow on his knee. He sat crisscrossed. Dream was getting distracted. 

"Was just waiting for you. How long have you been watching me sleep?" he breathed a laugh. 

"I wasn't watching you sleep!" George pouted. "You're the one passing out in the grass. You could go inside and sleep there. You'd be safer." 

"Aww, worried about me, Georgie?" Dream hummed, sitting up with a stretch. He leaned forward slightly, closer to the other. 

"Pfft, no. You're just being annoying," he scoffed. 

"Mm, I guess I am. You like it don't you?" Dream pushed, leaning closer. George looked pointedly away, putting his glasses on. 

"Stop," he spoke quickly, defensive. 

"You didn't answer my question."    
“Let’s just go inside.” George stood and held out a hand for Dream to take, sighing. Dream gave him a sloppy smile and took it, hoisting himself up. He stumbled forward and fell into George, who gasped and caught him. “You’re a mess.” 

“Only when I’m with you,” Dream quipped, breathing a tired laugh. 

George scoffed and threw Dream’s arm over his shoulder. He dragged him inside, barely holding him steady. 

Dream leaned into his friend, letting someone else take control of the situation. Normally he wouldn’t let anyone else help him like this, but there is always an exception. He’d let George do anything he wanted. He’d give him the world if he simply asked. 

George helped him sit down on the bed inside, moving away to shut the door. The moonlight slipped through the cracks in the shutters, a single torch flickering in the corner. Dream closed his eyes and slid off his helmet, pulling his hood down again. 

He shook the hair from his face, pressing a hand against the mask. He sighed softly, wishing that he could be free from it. He traced the smile across the front, feeling the indent in the porcelain. He opened his eyes again to see George sitting on the floor across from him. 

Something in him wanted to say something, everything, but he kept his mouth shut. He didn’t even know what he would say, given the chance. At this point, he only knew he had feelings for George. He didn’t know how deep they went, but he could take a guess. The way he looked at him gave it all away, not that anyone could see. 

“You should really rest, Dream.” George finally spoke, standing. “You’ve been really weird lately.” 

“I’m not weird.” Dream leaned down to slide off his boots. He winced and leaned back with a sigh, his body aching.

“Let me help,” George muttered, crouching down in front of the bed. Dream watched him, holding his breath. He watched George slide his boots off and set them aside, moving to help him take off his leg armor. 

Dream's eyes followed George's fingers, watching him undo the straps around his ankles. He set the armor down with a clank, leaning it against his boots. His breath hitched as he watched those hands move up to the armor around his thighs. 

Too close. 

He moved back onto the bed, pushing George's hands away. As much as he wanted that, he wasn't ready. He already felt like he was going to implode just having George's attention right now. 

"Ah, sorry.." George rubbed the back of his neck, looking at the wall. He sat back on his heels, watching Dream undo the straps. He handed his friend the armor, letting him set it down by the rest for him.

He felt vulnerable. This was dangerous. He could be stabbed in the back at any moment! What if George decided to turn on him? He could still be upset over his kingship, and who knows what Sapnap could have told him! 

Yet he let it happen. He was always fighting himself. It was just a slew of problems easily avoided if he just put his trust in someone else for once.

He watched George's eyes follow his movements, a sliver of moonlight across his cheeks. He tensed as the other stood and walked over. He leaned back as the other leaned forward, eyes going wide. 

"Uhm-" he started, but George spoke first.

"I can get this for you. Lift your arms." he mumbled. Dream did as he was told, watching George unstrap his chestplate from his side. They were even closer now, but he didn't push away this time. 

This was much more a hug than anything else. Dream didn't realize how much he needed this until he leaned his head on George's shoulder, sighing. He smelled nice. It reminded him of refreshing summer rain and cool nights. The sweet smell of buzzing mosquitoes and moonlight, a light breeze through the open window. It was comforting. 

The other boy shifted slightly, still trying to get Dream's armor off of him. He wasn't helping at all, exhaustion taking the reins once again. 

"Work with me, please," George spoke softly. He let the other lift the chest plate over his head with little trouble. As soon as he set it down, Dream got comfy in his arms again. 

George, who was still standing awkwardly, settled down in Dream's lap after a moment of hesitation. He was too tired to care, happy to have someone hold him. The embrace eased his fear of vulnerability. George would protect him. He was sure of it. 

Dream laid his head on George's shoulder, pulling him closer. He was surprised that the other didn't pull away. A normal hug was hard enough to manage on its own, so he was worried that this would end soon.

Dream wouldn't let him go, either way. He couldn't just pull away and leave him all alone. Sapnap hated him, he was sure everyone else did after he exiled Tommy. Hell, half of the SMP probably wanted him dead! This was the most comfort he'd had in forever. He wasn't going to let it go so soon. 

He started to drift off in George's arms, the other rubbing his back lightly. He felt him trace patterns across his back, breathing steadily. He was safe here. He never wanted to leave this fantasy come alive. 

The peace was ripped from his hands as a hand punched open the shutters from the outside, filling the room with light. Dream looked up and pulled away slightly. He didn't have enough time to react before an arrow was fired at him. 

The projectile tore through Dream's shoulder and pierced the skin, ripping a scream from his throat. The pain shot through his arm, fiery and overwhelming. Blood was already seeping through the fabric. 

"Dream!" George screamed. The other pushed him away, his movements panicked and fear-ridden. Tears ran down his cheeks, eyes wide as he stared at the wound.

"Traitor!" 

Dream whirled around to face his attacker, but was met with a flaming arrow to the face. Before he could feel anything, it all went black. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANKS FOR ALL THE READS! SHARE WITH FRIENDS IF U WANT TO I GUESS!!! I LOVE YOU ALL SORRY THIS CHAPTER TOOK SO LONG!!   
> <33


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